IBSA eConnection: 2013 IBSA calendar, grow your church, 7 questions for leaders and more

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Save the dates! Get the 2013 IBSA calendar now
The 2013 IBSA Calendar will be delivered to you in the form of periodic resource catalogs beginning later this year rather than through a single booklet. We're excited about this new way of producing the calendar and believe it will help Baptists in Illinois to be more involved in leadership, missions, training and other events more than ever. To get the 2013 IBSA calendar now, visit IBSA.org.

LifeWay calls men to prayer before Beth Moore event in Moline

LifeWay invites Baptist men in Illinois and Iowa to participate in a time of prayer and worship in Moline, Ill., just prior to its two-day Living Proof Live event with Beth Moore. On July 26 at 7 p.m. they are asked to gather at the iWireless Center for a "time prayer for our country, our churches, our pastors, and our families." Find out more at IBSA.org.

Learn more about the July 27-28 Living Proof Live event in Moline.

IBSA's Butler to blog from Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics will begin in London July 27. IBSA's Serena Butler is leading a team of 22 volunteers from Illinois who will work alongside London churches as they reach out to the countless visitors coming to their city for the Summer Olympic Games. Pray for Butler and her team as they travel to London and share Christ at the Olympics. Butler will blog about experiences next week at iB2news.org.

Southern Baptist-related Olympic coverage is available now IBSA.org and will continue throughout the games.

How your church can grow this summer

Churches should grow in the summer. However, they rarely do for one simple reason: their leaders let down too much. The reasoning is simple: offerings and attendance go down, so it's better to save their best efforts and cost for the times that people are actually around. Learn more at ChurchLeaders.com.

7 questions to help leaders from committing sins of omission

How can leaders make certain they are not seeking the comfort of sameness and committing sins of omission? What checks can they use to remind themselves to be vigilant lest they fail as a leader who acts and takes risks? Thom Rainer suggests asking these seven questions at his blog, ThomRainer.com.

Can a church greeting save a life?

If church is an assembly of believers who belong to the same family, then sincere greetings should be a big part of the family gatherings every week. If not, some will become the cold "sit, listen and leave" church. Learn how a single greeting saved one man's life at OutreachMagazine.com.

IBSA eConnection is a weekly electronic newsletter designed to provide Illinois Baptists with relevant, useful information and resources. We pray it enriches your ministry and helps your church to grow and minister.